Planning a Wedding? Time to Snap Up the Caterer.

January and February are our busiest months for booking wedding clients.  While it is important to hire a caterer that fits the couple and the event, the search does not have to be painful.  We at AZ Catering like to sit down with a couple for an initial chat (it usually takes about an hour) with the bride and groom.

Here's what you can expect us to discuss.

• We ask about the venue.  Is it in a beautiful winery?  A charming childhood home?  Off the grid, in the middle of a majestic forest?  AZ Catering can cater to any of these locations and so many more.   
• We ask about style of service desired.  Buffet?  Family-style? Plated?  Whatever style suits the event and the couple works for us.  
• Most importantly, we ask about menu ideas.  Every couple can tailor a menu to exactly what they want to eat on their happy occasion.   Fried chicken AND a fancy-dancy taco bar?  Of course!  A meal that is completely gluten-free or vegan?  Easy!  A couple wants Grandma's famous curry?  AZ Catering loves to take a favorite family recipe and fix it for a hundred people. 

We create a perfect recipe out of your answers and craft a delicious menu for your unique event.

There are still a few available weekends on the AZ Catering calendar and we look forward to discussing your wedding feast.

JPR Wine Tasting Only 9 Days Away

It is that time of year again- the 34th annual Jefferson Public Radio Wine Tasting & Silent Auction is just around the bend!  This is the eighth year that Chef Awna is involved in both planning the event and providing delicious food.  Platters of all sorts of yummy bites provided by AZ Catering will be circulating through two floors of fabulous wine vendors and live music.  Come on out to enjoy a great party and support public radio.  For more information check out this link: http://ijpr.org/post/dont-miss-jprs-34th-annual-wine-tasting-silent-auction.

Apple-Cranberry Upside Down Cake, Our Favorite Recipe of 2014

Apple-Cranberry Upside Down Cake took the, well, the cake!  It is especially great topped with whipped cream and even more decadent with a drizzle of some bourbon sauce.  Happy baking!

Cake for hundreds at the 2014 KS Wild fundraising dinner.

Apple-Cranberry Upside Down Cake

Recipe adapted from Cooks Illustrated - now an AZ Catering Original Recipe © 2014

Will make 12 large portions (cut 3 x 4) or 15 smaller portions (cut 3 x 5). 

Ingredients

12 Tbs. Butter

2 c Brown sugar

3 lb Granny Smith apples

2 Tbs. Lemon juice

1 lb Cranberries

3 c Flour

1 Tbs. Baking powder                                                  

1/2 Tbs. Table salt

2 c Sugar

1 c Brown sugar

6 Eggs

18 Tbs. Butter, melted

1 ½ c Sour cream

1 Tbs. Vanilla

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Spray 9 x 13 pan extremely well
3. Prep fruit: 
1. Halve apples from pole to pole.  Remove cores and stems etc.  Cut ½ the apples into ¼” thick slices; set aside.  Cut remaining apples into ½” thick slices.
2. Heat butter in skillet.
3. Add ½” thick apples and cook, stirring 2 or 3 times, until apples begin to caramelize, 4-6 minutes.  Do NOT fully cook apples.
4. Add ¼” slices, brown sugar and lemon juice; continue cooking, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves and apples are coated, about 1 minute longer.
5. Transfer apple mixture into prepared pan.  Press lightly into an even layer along with cranberries.
4. Mix dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and salt); set aside.
5. Whisk white and brown sugars together.  Add eggs and whisk well, until thick and homogeneous.  Slowly whisk in melted butter until combined.  Add sour cream and vanilla; whisk until combined.
6. Add flour mixture to wet and whisk until just combined.
7. Pour batter evenly over fruit in pan.  This insures the fruit will stay in a layer on the bottom of the pan and not mix into the batter.
8. Bake until golden brown, about 30-45 min. or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, or with very few crumbs.
9. Cool pan on rack for 20 min.  Run paring knife to loosen sides.  Invert cake.  Let cool 20 min.
10. Cut into pieces and serve.

2014 Recap

2014 was another fabulously successful year for AZ Catering & Event Planning- we finally figured out how to balance work and play!  After spending 2013 so busy there was not time to stop and smell the pulled pork, we felt it was time for an adjustment.  We wanted to find an equilibrium between working with AMAZING clients, creating delicious food and finding the time to search out creative inspiration.  Mission accomplished!  Our amazing crew had much to do with achieving that balance - laughter and joking is always much appreciated when working 15-hour days (especially after working on millions of Lamb Kebabs long into the night…).

This year brought us back together with a huge roster of wonderful repeat clients:  Ashland Rowing Club, Ashland Outdoor Store, Ashland Independent Film Festival, the American Band College, the Rogue Valley Symphony, the Rogue Creamery, Jefferson Public Radio, Oregon Nonprofit Leadership Conference, and KS Wild to name a few.  It is a pleasure to work with such a wide array of remarkable people year after year. 

2014 also introduced us to some incredible new clients.  We catered an amazing five-course meal for the Rotary Club at the lovely Willow Witt Ranch.  Talk about lucky- it isn’t every day we get to cater with beautiful woodland meadows all around us!  Later in the year we had the opportunity to cater for the crew of the Food Network television show “Restaurant Impossible” as they filmed at the Ashland restaurant Mystics Treats.  And of course AZ Catering & Event Planning would like to wish all of the lovely couples from this past year’s weddings all the best.

In addition to all our events, Chef Awna found time to spend a vacation in Italy on her bicycle for a month!  She had a wonderful time and brought back with her all sorts of innovation for the recipe book including creative new ways to cook with farro.  (Recipe below.)

All in all, it was an amazing year, and we are all very excited to see what 2015 brings.  

Marvelous Jalapeno-Corn Fritters with Honey Butter.

"Thank you so much for making our day DELICIOUS!  

Everyone loved it and we'll be recommending you!" 

~Tarri and Justin, at Wisteria Gardens, 09/06/14.

Oh-so-yummy Feta Parsley Pate with Radishes on Crostini.

Crew member Brandt makes MANY frittatas 

for breakfast served at the 

2014 Oregon Nonprofit Leadership Conference.

Mouthwatering fresh, Grilled Peaches.

Our portable kitchen means we can cook anywhere, anytime!

Tender, juicy, juicy Chicken Kebabs.

Tables set for the Rotary Club at Willow Witt Ranch.

Crew member Tori prepares pasta for American Band College.

Awna and Ana are So. Excited. For. Cheese. Festival!!!

Decadent Meyer Lemon Tartlets with Whipped Cream and fresh Lemon Zest.

Beet-Pickled Deviled Eggs.  

Incredibly colorful.  Incredibly delicious.

Chef AZ and crewmember James grill up a storm 

on a beautiful summer evening!

Farmer’s Farro Salad

An AZ Catering original recipe copyright 2015

*Yield: 10-12 servings depending on size OR 5 cups finished product.

Ingredients:

2 c     Uncooked farro

2 ¾ c  Water

½ tsp. Salt

Veggies mixed in:

2 tsp.  Kalamata olives, minced

1 c      Red onion, minced

1 c      Cucumber, minced

1 pint  Grape or cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1 Tbs. Basil, minced

Dressing:

¼ c     Extra virgin olive oil 

1 tsp.  Balsamic vinegar

1 Tbs. Red wine vinegar

1 Tbs. Honey

½ tsp. Red chili flakes

2 Tbs. Dijon mustard

Garnish:

½        Bunch parsley, chopped

Preparation:

• Mix farro, water and salt in large pot.  Bring to a boil, then cover, reduce to simmer, and cook for 10 minutes.  Turn off burner, and let sit, covered, for 5-10 minutes more.  Spread out on a rimmed sheet pan and let cool completely (do not skip this step).
• Make sure all veggies are minced.
• Make dressing:  Whisk together vinegars, honey, red chili flakes and Dijon mustard.  Emulsify in olive oil.  
• Toss cooked/cooled farro with vegetables and dressing.  Stir well.  Adjust flavorings, adding salt and pepper as necessary.
• Garnish w/ parsley directly before service.

Note:

The salad is ready to serve, but can also be made and store in the fridge, covered, one day ahead.  If stored over night, more dressing will have to be added.

AZ Catering crew for American Band College for 2013 - such a great group!!

Ashland Independent Film Festival - Oscar Night Gala

This Sunday is the Ashland Independent Film Festival's Oscar Night Gala. Tickets still on sale! This year, AIFF hired me to Event Plan all of their parties. I am SO excited to work with this amazing non-profit. It's been so much fun to plan a party in its entirety, rather than just the food aspect of it all, and I've been having a blast. It's such a dynamic job, and at this point (two days before the event) I feel calm, organized, and ready. Working in collaboration with Jesse Longhurst of Red Letter Event Planning, I feel like there's nothing we can't conquer!

Pictures to follow after the event - I promise...

2010 in Review - such an amazing success!

2010 was absolutely outrageous! AZ Catering & Event Planning fully hit its stride this year, and business doubled. Almost every weekend was booked with weddings or corporate events - and it's already looking to be the same for 2011.

Besides our wonderful wedding clients, AZ booked an enormous gig for ABC - American Band College (who hold their annual workshops in Ashland, OR). We, with two weeks notice, were able to organize and pull off delicious lunches for 175 people every day for 16 days. Nothing short of a miracle! We hired an amazing crew of dedicated people, and definitely cooked our buns off.

Shortly after that event ended, and the wedding season exploded, Chef Awna was in a motorcycle accident - a deer decided to T-Bone the bike! Thankfully, no bones were broken, but Awna suffered a terrible twisted ankle, and a deep hematoma (which has still not healed as of this post). Turns out - catering out of a wheelchair is extremely difficult! But again, her amazing crew showed up in force and the most complicated event of the season was a total success. A very special thanks goes out to Rachel Shapiro - her constant drive and dedication made this last year possible, and her promotion to Assistant Manager was well deserved (and needed!).

Personal note from Chef Awna: I am amazed and honored at the good fortune and success of my business. I want to thank every single client who took a chance on me, and look forward to working with you again in the years to come. The Proof really is in the Party - don't you agree?

AIFF - (Ashland Independent Film Festival) Opening Night Bash w/ Elena Withers and Clea Arthur - the prettiest little cigarette girls on the planet! Though we served
Chocolate Covered Strawberries instead...

Endive stuffed w/ Lemon Chevre and Asparagus w/ Chive Blossoms.

Catering in a wheelchair is FUN! (This was 5 days after the accident)

Fancy-Dancy Taco Bar at Eden Vale.

Sushi Style portion of Rosie and Danny's wedding...

They wanted three different ethnicity's: Asian, Spanish and Italian
- so much food, so little time...

Chef Nyomi Rivera swooped in to save the day - especially with me out of commission and in a wheel chair. She was unbelievable and did an incredible job as my arms and legs - and eyes and brain. Thank you thank you thank you!

Head Chef Nick Gerstmar charmed everyone with his constant grace and amazing grill skills.

Rachel Shapiro is a gift from the catering gods. She is always such a tremendous help and constant support.

Antipasta platters for the millions...

Balsamic Marinated Mushrooms complete any Antipasta platter - sooooo good!

Bride and Groom start the food flow - good luck Michael and Cassandra!

Grilled Peach Shortcake w/ Nutmeg Whipped Cream - I can't wait for summer again!

Fresh Rosemary Parmesan Crackers w/ Roasted Red Pepper Spread - oh my goodness!

Beautiful October wedding for Todd and Celeste - such an elegant menu!!!!!

Keep checking back - more photos of upcoming AZ Events to come... Hurrah!!!!